Learn how to make air fryer chocolate chip cookies in a matter of minutes without turning on the oven! Air fryer cookies have addictive, crispy edges and plenty of melty chocolate for a delicious treat you’ll make over and over again! The thing I love most about using the air fryer for this recipe is that the circulating hot air makes the perfect gooey chocolate chip cookies with a lightly crisp exterior, creating the perfect combination of a gooey center and crispy outside.
A simple tip before you get started: Line the air fryer basket with a piece of parchment paper. The cookie dough is soft and may sink into the gaps in the basket if you do not line it! For more cookie recipes, try my double chocolate chip cookies, cream cheese cookies, and easy sugar cookies.
What You Need To Make This Recipe
Butter — the butter needs to be softened at room temperature. I prefer using unsalted butter and adding the salt amount to taste, but if you’re a big fan of salted butter, you can leave out the add salt in this recipe.
Sugar — a mix of two sugars creates the perfect chocolate chip cookie: light brown sugar and granulated sugar. Brown sugar is key to a chewy chocolate chip cookie while also giving a deeper flavor and keeping the cookies moist for longer. Granulated sugar creates iconic crispy edges and caramelizes a bit more. Together, these two sugars create the perfect balance of chewiness and crispness!
Large Egg — set the egg out about 30 minutes in advance so it’s at room temperature when you start baking. The egg helps the cookies rise and spread while also contributing to the chewy texture.
Vanilla — use good vanilla extract, not vanilla essence (which is synthetically flavored).
Flour — use your favorite brand of all-purpose flour. This staple flour has the right amount of protein in it to create a light-textured but chewy cookie.
Leavening — baking soda helps the cookies spread and rise.
Salt — salt enhances the other flavors in these air fryer cookies. If you love an extra salty chocolate chip cookie, sprinkle some flaked salt on top of each cookie right when it comes out of the oven.
Mix-ins — I used semi-sweet chocolate chips, but I have a bunch of ideas for other flavor additions further down!
How To Make Air Fryer Cookies
1. Add the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar to a large bowl. Beat on medium-high speed using a hand mixer for about 3 minutes.
2. Add the egg and vanilla to the mixture and beat on medium speed for about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
3. Add the flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix on low until you no longer see any dry bits or streaks of flour.
4. Set aside the mixer and stir in chocolate chips by hand. I find using a spatula to be the easiest way to incorporate the chocolate chips.
5. Divide the cookie dough into 12 equal parts (about 2½ tablespoons each) and roll into balls. If your air fryer needs to be preheated, preheat it to 300°F. Line the basket of the air fryer with parchment paper, with holes poked in so air can circulate freely. Place 4 cookie dough balls into the basket.
6. Air fry for 14 minutes. Remove the basket from the air fryer and let the cookies cool for 4 minutes on the parchment paper in the basket. After 4 minutes, transfer the air fryer chocolate chip cookies to a cooling rack to cool completely. Repeat the process for the remaining cookie dough.
Can You Bake In An Air Fryer?
Yes! I love baking in my air fryer. Air fryers are basically small convection ovens, so you can bake many goodies in them. Some air fryers even have a specific “Bake” function on them. But if yours doesn’t, just air fryer at the temperature directed in the recipe. Try out my air fryer cheesecake and air fryer brownies next!
Why Should You Bake Cookies In The Air Fryer?
Air fryer chocolate chip cookies are a fantastic option if you are short on time. No need to preheat the oven for ages or chill the cookie dough before baking! Baking cookies in the air fryer is also great if you are craving cookies, but don’t want to bake a whole batch. Since you can only cook 4 air fryer cookies at a time, you can refrigerate or freeze the remaining cookie dough for the next time you want cookies!
My Favorite Flavor Variations
While you can never go wrong with a classic chocolate chip cookie, there are so many creative ways to add flavor and texture to these air fryer cookies. Use the same total amount of other mix-ins as the chocolate chips in this recipe (1 cup). Some of my favorite variations are:
- Dark chocolate chunks and toasted chopped pecans
- Dried cranberries and white chocolate chips
- Chopped salted peanuts and milk chocolate chips or peanut butter chips
- Chopped up Oreos
- M&Ms or peanut butter candy pieces
How To Store And Reheat
Store leftover cookies in an airtight container refrigerated or at room temperature for up to 5 days. You can freeze them after baking for up to 3 months. To reheat them and give them that “freshly baked” flavor after a day or 2, warm them up in the air fryer. Preheat it to 350°F and warm up the cookies for 2 minutes. Be sure to check the air fryer cookies every 30 or so seconds to make sure they don’t burn.
Can You Cook These From Frozen?
Yes! Air fry the cookie dough balls from frozen as directed in the recipe, but add 2 to 3 minutes to the cooking time. No need to thaw them first!
Can I Bake These Cookies In The Oven?
Yes, you can bake these in the oven if you would like. Scoop the cookie dough balls onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and bake in an oven preheated to 350°F for about 12 minutes. Because the regular oven doesn’t circulate as much hot air around the doughballs, they may spread a bit more than in the air fryer. You can also try a batch of my classic chocolate chip cookies if you’re looking for an oven-specific recipe!
Pro Tips For Making This Recipe
- Use a room-temperature egg. It will incorporate into the softened butter much better than an egg straight out of the refrigerator.
- Chilling and freezing instructions: If you don’t want to bake the whole batch of cookies immediately, you can cover and refrigerate the cookie dough balls for up to 72 hours. Alternatively, freeze them on a cookie sheet until solid, then transfer them to a freezer-safe container, and freeze for up to 3 months. Air fry from frozen.
- To enhance the flavor: Sprinkle the cookies with flaky sea salt once they are finished baking.
Frequently Asked Questions
Baking time really depends on the air fryer. My air fryer cookies were perfect after 14 minutes, but different models might take more or less time. If you are worried about overcooking them, my advice would be to check the cookies for doneness at around the 12-minute mark.
You can use either one. This mainly depends on your air fryer, as many do not have a Bake setting. The Bake setting on many air fryers is a preset function (think of it like the popcorn setting on the microwave!). The appliance lowers the temperature slightly throughout the cooking process to function a bit more like a regular oven. These cookies will have a slightly less crisp exterior when cooked on the Bake setting. If your air fryer does not have this setting, use the Air Fry setting and you’ll still bake up perfect cookies every time. I developed this recipe using the Air Fry setting.
Yes, you need to use parchment paper in the air fryer for these cookies. Without it, the dough might leak through the slots in the air fryer basket. Removing the air fryer cookies is also easier when you use parchment paper because they are very soft straight after air frying. You can purchase air fryer liners or simply cut up parchment paper. I recommend piercing holes or slits into the parchment paper to allow for good airflow while the cookies bake.
Depending on the model, your air fryer may or may not need to be preheated. I typically preheat mine for 3 minutes even if the model doesn’t explicitly require it. I find placing the cookie dough into a hot air fryer helps it cook evenly and end up with those perfectly crisp edges.
If you love this recipe try these out!
If you’ve tried this air fryer cookie recipe, then don’t forget to rate it and let me know how you got on in the comments below. I love hearing from you!
Air Fryer Cookies
Video
Equipment
- Air fryer with 6-quart basket
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened (113g)
- ½ cup light brown sugar (110g)
- ¼ cup granulated sugar (50g)
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour (180g)
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (180g)
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar. Using an electric hand mixer, beat on medium-high speed for about 3 minutes, stopping to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl halfway through, until well combined.
- Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat on medium speed until well combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl again.
- Add the flour, then sprinkle the baking soda and salt evenly over top. Mix on low speed until no dry bits of flour remain, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the chocolate chips by hand with a spatula.
- Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces (about 2½ tablespoons each) and roll into balls.
- Preheat the air fryer to 300°F if your model requires it.
- Line the basket of an air fryer with parchment paper (cut to fit the basket if you don’t have an air fryer liner). Working in batches, place 4 pieces of dough in the basket, equally spaced.
- Air fry for 14 minutes at 300°F. Remove the basket from the air fryer and let the cookies cool for 4 minutes on the parchment paper, before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely. Continue cooking the rest of the dough balls.
Notes
- Use a room-temperature egg. It will incorporate into the softened butter much better than an egg straight out of the refrigerator.
- Chilling and freezing instructions: If you don’t want to bake the whole batch of cookies immediately, you can cover and refrigerate the cookie dough balls for up to 72 hours. Alternatively, freeze them on a cookie sheet until solid, then transfer them to a freezer-safe container, and freeze for up to 3 months. Air fry from frozen.
- To enhance the flavor: Sprinkle the cookies with flaky sea salt once they are finished baking.
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